Why Do People Age, Get Sick, & Die?

Illness is something everyone goes through. No matter how healthy a person is, no one is immune. So why do people age, get sick and die eventually?

Bro. Ruben: Illness is something that everyone goes through. No matter how healthy one is, no one is immune. So why do people get sick? Today, we will learn what the Bible has to say about illness and if it is merely part of being human. Why do people get sick? Now dear viewers, Brother Ronnie, we need to ask this question: Are we superheroes?

Bro. Ronnie: Well, when I was young, I used to want to be one Bro. Ruben, but we know that we are not superheroes.

Bro. Ruben: So we need to ask this question: Why do people get sick?

Bro. Ronnie: We can answer that question by consulting the Holy Scriptures here in I Corinthians 15:51-53

[I CORINTHIANS 15:51-53]

So to answer the question Brother Ruben, “Why do we get sick?”, well we can see that man’s physical or existing body here on earth is corruptible or imperfect and the Bible says that our bodies are considered mortal or will actually die.

Bro. Ronnie: That’s correct, Bro. Ruben. We need to actually ask: What is the reality of man’s condition in regards to his physical being or his body?

Bro. Ruben: Well Bro. Ronnie, dear viewers, we could read the answer from the Scriptures here in the book of II Corinthians, we shall read chapter 4 verse 16, this is what the Apostles’ mentioned:

[II CORINTHIANS 4:16]

The Bible made it very clear, Brother Ronnie that our physical being or our bodies are weakening. They are breaking down. In other words, as we get older, then inevitable happens. Our bodies get weak. Our bodies lose its strength. Now we need to find out further, Bro. Ronnie, that after this happens, that our bodies break down when we get older, how does the Bible describe the process by which our bodies become weaker or our bodies lose it’s strength?

Bro. Ronnie: Well let’s find out in the Bible here in Ecclesiastes, the chapter is 12 and the verses are 1-5, this is what we can read dear guests and viewers:

[ECCLESIASTES 12:1-5]

As we can see Brother Ruben, that the Bible clearly paints a vivid picture of what time can do to the human body. Different parts become weak, our arms which have protected us, our legs which helped us stand up grow weak as well, even functions of the body become impaired, until the body can no longer keep up.

Bro. Ruben: In fact, one of the things that I noticed when you read, Brother Ronnie is something that many people dread to have. The Bible mentioned there about our hair turning white. That’s the reality of life nowadays. That’s the reality of man’s life here in this world. In fact, if we look, for example, at famous athletes, when they were younger, they could jump very high. They could run very fast. Those who probably were very wise, very smart, their brains worked at a great speed, but what they noticed as they got older, well their speed now was no longer there. Their bodies now had changed in a way that it was now weaker. Even when it came to the wisdom that they had, it was kind-of going backwards now. That’s what the Bible mentions, the state of man’s life here in this world, man’s physical condition.

Bro. Ronnie: And that’s why we can see sometimes athletes, they retire in their prime because of injuries, because the body is susceptible to injuries and sickness. But we need to also ask, Bro. Ruben, what eventually will happen to man’s body?

Bro. Ruben: Because naturally, it doesn’t end there, that the body just becomes weak, there is an end to it. And this is what the Bible mentions, dear guests, beloved friends, and Brother Ronnie, here in the book of Ecclesiastes. You read chapter 12 verses 1-5. I would like to continue from 5 all the way to 7. This is what the Bible teaches to us:

[ECCLESIASTES 12:5-7]

The message of the Bible is very clear, beloved friends, that after one’s physical being deteriorates, what comes after this is none other than one’s death. That even though one may want to live longer, that even though one may want to be able to prolong his life, he could not prevent the inevitable which is none other than his death. In fact Brother Ronnie, based on what we have read, how does the Bible describe where man will go to? In fact, the Bible mentions that man will return to the dust, that means to say that he will die.

Now beloved friends, knowing that man’s life has an end really puts things into perspective. But we need to find out, was man always destined to die? Was that the plan of our Lord God for man from the very beginning? Well please stay with us after this break to find out the answer to this question.

[COMMERCIAL]Crisis. It continues to strike our modern world. Everyday, headlines fill up with stories about disasters both natural and man-made. All of these things are being reported to cause profound damage to people’s health. Over 130 million people around the globe have been affected by humanitarian crises and they site health as a major concern.

Bro. Ruben: Welcome back to The Message. We’re talking about what, for some, may be a difficult subject: death. Now our question before the break was this: Was man always destined to die, to return to the earth as dust? What does the bible say about that, Brother Ronnie?

As we can see, dear viewers, man was not always destined to die. We know that because of his sin, which is a violation of God’s commandments, death became a reality not only for man but for all of us. So man was not destined to die. But we need to ask, Bro Reuben: who is that one man who committed sin, which is why death came into the world, what was that sin that he committed?

Bro. Ruben: Well Bro. Ronnie and beloved viewers, we could read the answer here in the book of Genesis chapter 3 verses 17-19, well this is what the Bible gives as our answer:

[GENESIS 3:17-19]The Bible here, Brother Ronnie, is talking about the first man and woman created by God none other than Adam and Eve. In fact, at the beginning, death was not yet part of the plan of our Father in heaven for man.

Bro. Ronnie: In fact, they lived in paradise in the Garden of Eden where everything was already provided for them by God.

Bro. Ruben: Yes, like for example, the food that they would need to survive was given to them, not only this but even the place to live, even instructions to abide by so that they could maintain that kind of life that came from our Father in heaven. But sad to say, instead of complying with God’s instructions, what the first man and woman did was that they disobeyed the instruction of our Father in heaven and because of this or the result of this, Brother Ronnie, was none other than death for man. We can see here then, that it is not God that is to be blamed for the plight of man, which is none other than death. It is man’s fault, which is why he is in that condition before our Father in heaven.

Now we all know, Bro. Ronnie, that we have found out the reasons why man does become sick because of his disobedience to God’s instruction. We need to find out: How does our Lord God feel?

Bro. Ronnie: Well let’s read that here Bro. Ruben, here in the book of the Prophet Jeremiah, the chapter is 14 the verses are 10-12, this is what we can read:

[JEREMIAH 14:10-12]

So we can see here Bro. Ruben and dear viewers that God is not pleased. In fact, he is angry with those who lack self-control. Because of this, they committed sin, they disobeyed God, and because of this, God declared that they should suffer by war, starvation, and even disease.

Bro. Ruben: That’s why for one to say that, “God is wrong for allowing man to die” well that’s wrong for one to say. God planned something good for man. God wanted what was good for him. The proof of that: He gave him all of those things at the beginning, but man ruined it, beloved friends. That’s why for one to be able to overcome, for example, that plight, what is it that he needs to do Bro. Ronnie? Obey the instructions and commandments of our Father in heaven.

Bro. Ronnie: And not just the commandments, he needs to obey all of God’s commandments. Some people might say, “Well, I’m doing good. I’m worshipping God. I’m doing my best. So maybe I’m not being punished by God. Maybe I’m just being tested in my faith like Job.” Well what should we understand regarding Job?

Bro. Ruben: He obeyed completely. We want to stress that word, beloved friends. Completely obey all of the commandments of our Father in heaven. Now what is one such commandment of our Lord God during our time that one needs to follow so that he could be part of the nation of our Father in heaven?

Bro. Ronnie: Know who God is, he needs to worship God in the right manner in His nation, through the teachings also of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we can learn that also by following up on our website on incmedia.org wherein it tells us different teachings, the fundamental teachings of the Bible that we firmly believe in.

Bro. Ruben: Now one of which, is to become a member of the true Church of Christ. Now you might be thinking, beloved viewers, “Well, how can becoming a member of the Church of Christ help me when it comes to my sicknesses, my welfare in this life and eventually death?” Well for us to find out, we invite you to investigate further the teachings of the true Church of Christ or the Iglesia Ni Cristo. In fact, we have a monthly publication entitled Pasugo, God’s Message wherein one could be able to examine the teachings inside the Church of Christ to be able to have a further understanding of the instructions of our Father in heaven. If you would like to avail of a copy of our monthly publication, God’s Message magazine, please visit our website incmedia.org or you can go to a house of worship or chapel closest to your area to find out more about the Church of Christ or the Iglesia Ni Cristo.

Beloved friends, the message of the day is this: Being human is all about dealing with problems like aging, sickness, as well as death. But as we live in this world caring for our physical bodies, all the more we should challenge ourselves to find the path back to our Lord God and that perfect incorruptible and immortal body.

Bro. Ronnie: Today we looked at the topic of sickness and death through a biblical lens. Stay tuned for our next episode where we’ll find out what the Holy Scriptures have to say about healing. Thank you for joining us on this episode of The Message. But before you go, we invite you to join us for a prayer.

Bro. Ruben: Our most gracious and loving Father in heaven, we offer to You our profound thanks for this great opportunity You have given to us wherein we could share our faith with our fellow men. Today O Lord, we have discussed a very important topic that no one of us would ever or could ever avoid. We beg of You to please help our friends and our loved ones to be able to understand what we have studied today so that they would be able to find that path back to You, eventually receive the promise of salvation.

Lord Jesus, our Savior, we beg for Your mercy today. Please make intercession for us beseeching our great God to grant all of our requests to bless our friends and loved ones, our dear viewers, so that they would be able to know the truth that would bring them back to our Lord God and receive the graces of our Father in heaven.

O God, as we return to You in our prayer, it is our divine hope that our supplications have reached You and You will continue to maintain our strong connection with the spirit that reigns within the Church Administration, for all of these things we ask and beg for through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.